Do Steve McQueen And John Ridley Have A Beef?

At last night’s 2014 Academy Awards ceremony, many took notice of 12 Years A Slave director Steve McQueen clapping somewhat reluctantly for screenwriter John Ridley after he won an Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay.

Even more glaring, Ridley did not thank McQueen during his acceptance speech thus sparking murmurs of a feud.

Adding fuel to the growing whispers of a rift between the men was McQueen not thanking Ridley in his acceptance speech when 12 Years A Slave won the Oscar for Best Picture, although Ridley was onstage with the rest of the producers, actors and crew.

Ridley, who was once a former stand-up comedian and television script writer, has written for popular sitcoms “Martin” and “The Fresh Prince of Bel Air” in the 1990s. He has also written for “The Wanda Sykes Show” and has also worked on the Showtime cable show, “Barbershop,” and served as the program’s executive producer.

Back in January, Ridley revealed in an interview that he worked on the script for 12 Years A Slave unpaid for four years until Brad Pitt‘s Plan B company came in and funded McQueen’s film. Ridley said he was paid on the first day of filming, and gushed over being part of the project.

The rumor mill continues to churn, with some alleging that the issue between McQueen and Ridley is over credit for the screenplay. Neither of the gentlemen has addressed the issue, so much of this is largely speculative.